1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to bras for positioning and stabilizing breast implants post-operatively and for restraining vertical (inertial) bounce of breast tissue during times of vigorous physical activity.
2. Background of the Invention
A woman""s breast are composed predominantly of malleable fatty tissues supported by skin tissue and ligaments. Both the supporting skin tissue and the ligaments are somewhat elastic and do stretch. However, the elastic response of the supporting skin tissue and ligaments deteriorates with undue, or excessive stress, and with age.
Historically, since the late 1800s women have used brassieres (bras) to prevent undue or excessive stress on the supporting skin and ligament due to the mass or weight of their breasts. Such typical brassieres are adequate for xe2x80x9ceverydayxe2x80x9d relative sedate activities. However typical bras are neither designed for providing the support, nor the restraint needed to position and stabilize breast implants post-operatively. In particular, normal bras allow disfiguring upward migration of breast implants.
Sports bras and halters designed for restraining and protecting women""s breasts against excessive stress during times of vigorous physical activity have been typically based on one or two underlying principles: encapsulation and compression. Encapsulation bras seek to firmly and individually confine each breast within a cup-like structure, and have a disadvantage of chafing with torso movement. Compression bras are essentially designed to force or xe2x80x98compressxe2x80x99 the breasts against the chest wall as a single mass, and are neither comfortable nor suited for big breasted women.
The present invention is an improved brassiere, halter or bra having a pair of laterally affixed, wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands each with hook fastener material at its distal end for engaging the plush pile fabric of the other band allowing a wearer, alternatively, either to secure the breast bands together in an overlapping fashion across her front thoracic torso over the upper portion of her breasts for adjustably restraining upward movement of breast tissue and any associated implants, or to secure the breast bands together in an overlapping fashion across her back torso when such upward restraint is not required.
In more detail, a pair of wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands each with hook fastener material across its distal end are permanently secured (stitched to) forming seams at opposite left and right lateral side sections of a typical brassiere or bra. The breast bands have a relaxed (unstretched) length less than half the minimum circumference of the brassiere/halter/bra and a stretched length at most equal to the circumferential distance between the respective seams securing the breast bands on opposite sides of the garment. The wearer overlaps and fastens the wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands together over the upper surfaces of her breast to provide, and adjust, an elastic force urging each breast downward and laterally against her underlying muscle tissue (pectoralis major) on her chest wall without significantly constricting circulation or breathing.
A significant advantage of the invented improved brassiere, halter or bra is that the wearer can also overlap and fasten the wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands across her back when restraining downward restraint of the breast is not needed or desired. In this instance the overlap of the breast bands can be adjusted to comfortably provide an enhanced elastic response for conventional support of the breasts as well as aid distribution of forces due to breast mass or weight to and around the woman""s thoracic torso.
Another significant feature of the invented improvement for brassiere, halter or bra is that the hook fastener material extends perpendicularly across its width at the distal ends of the wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands allowing for adjustment of both the orientation of, and the overlap of the breast bands to provide restraining elastic forces, which, in combination with those provided by support components of conventional bra structures, are ideal for stabilizing and positioning breast implants post-operatively, i.e., to prevent upward migration breast implants and a resulting disfiguring displacement of the inframammary skinfold or crease, i.e., the skinfold under the breast constituting the transition between a woman""s breasts and her thoracic cage.
Another feature of the invented improvement for brassiere, halter or bra is that in xe2x80x98sportsxe2x80x99 or exercise surroundings, the pair of wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands secured (stitched) forming seams at opposite left and right lateral sides of a conventional sports bra or jogging halter, allow the wearer to modestly adjust the degree restraint necessary to prevent, undue, possibly painful breast bounce during exercise or strenuous physical activity.
Another aspect of the invented improvement for brassiere, halter or bra relates to creation of a design mechanism enabling fine tuning of the restraining and supporting forces provided by the unidirectional elastic response of the wide, plush pile, breast bands in combination with the underlying brassier/bra structure. In particular, the lateral seam anchoring the respective breast bands can be oriented relative to both the unidirectional elastic response of the breast bands and the elastic response of the lateral sections of the brassiere/halter/bra to provide a desired distribution of forces.
The adjustability of wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands of the invented improved bra or brassiere renders it equally suited for both smaller and larger breasted women. In particular, when overlapped and secured across a woman""s front thoracic torso over the upper portion of her breasts, the wide, unidirectional elastic, plush pile, fabric breast bands urge the base of the breast and associated conically rising tissue downward and inward which, in combination with the base/torso band of a conventional brassiere or bra encircling the torso just below the inframammary crease, works to extrude and confine the conically rising breast tissue in the cup of the brassiere or bra, hopefully chosen to be adequate to receive the breast mass.
Still other objects, features aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.